North Korea cancels Guam missile test but warns that could change

The most likely reason for backing down is their belief that Trump was not bluffing when he threatened to turn his country into ashes

(National Sentinel) Doomsday: North Korea’s blustery threat to launch missiles towards the island of Guam, where the U.S. has an extensive military base, has been canceled but state media warned leader Kim Jong-un could change his mind “if the Yankees persist in their extremely dangerous reckless actions.”

As reported by The Wall Street Journal, Pyongyang’s decision to back down could ease tensions with Washington, though it’s doubtful President Donald J. Trump has changed his view towards the North: That it must not be permitted to build nuclear-tipped ICBMs that can threaten the U.S.

The paper added:

Mr. Trump warned Pyongyang last week that the U.S. military was “locked and loaded” and could engulf the North in “fire and fury,” while North Korea, through its state media, had threatened to fire four missiles in a bid to surround the U.S. territory of Guam in “enveloping fire.”

North Korean state media said in its report Tuesday that Mr. Kim had made his decision not to fire on Guam after visiting a military command post and examining a military plan presented to him by his senior officers.

While Mr. Kim said he had decided not to launch the attack on Guam yet, he advised the U.S. “to take into full account” whether the current standoff was to its benefit. He also said it was incumbent on the U.S. to “stop at once arrogant provocations against the DPRK and unilateral demands and not provoke it any longer,” using an abbreviation for the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, the formal name for North Korea.

Kim can posture all he wants and he must because that’s what dictators trying to hold onto power do. But the most likely reason for backing down is his belief that Trump was not bluffing when he threatened to turn his country into ashes.